Chapter Thirty One – Renn – An Empty Forest

      The forest was dark. And not just because the sun was just starting to rise and the morning light wasn’t strong enough to pierce the thick treetops.

Walking slowly, I tried to comprehend why I felt so…

“Alone,” I whispered.

It’s been a few hours since I entered this so called “Owl’s Nest.” Yet not only have I not seen any owls, I hadn’t seen much of anything else.

Upon originally entering this forest, I had seen multiple deer and rabbits. I had heard the birds, and smelled a bear.

Yet now there was nothing. No animals. Not even the scent of them on the wind.

As if I was the only living creature in the entire forest.

Glancing around as I headed ever deeper into the dark forest, I wondered how it was even possible.

Forests weren’t empty. No matter how devoid of life they could look like sometimes, it was nothing more than a façade. Forests were always teeming with life. One could not have a forest without such life. They went hand and hand together.

Yet here now was one without any.

The oddest part was I didn’t even smell anything off. The lack of animals would be understandable, if I smelled a certain stink in the air. Something unnatural or powerful… yet there was nothing. I smelled the forest. The moss. I even smelt some kind of flower, too.

Although disturbing, it at least told me I was on the right track.

The path I had been following originally was gone. Not even a hint of a path buried by weeds and grass was visible, which meant that there probably never had been one. Yet I continued on in the same direction as I’d been walking.

Lughe’s letter had mentioned walking straight into the center of the Owl’s Nest.

So to the center I’d go.

I had planned to wait until sunrise to enter the forest, but had grown impatient. I had arrived at the edge of the forest around the middle of the night, and couldn’t help myself.

After all I could see well enough in the dark, and had spent most of my life in the forest. I had grown up inside one even denser than this. I had nothing to fear… yet now…

What if I spent days walking through this forest, only to emerge at the other end and never find these supposed owls?

I could continue on to Bordu, and then of course Twin Hills where Vim would be taking Lomi… but…

“What if I spent too long here?” I asked myself, worried I’d miss Vim by wandering too long in this forest.

Although there was no real… true urgency, to find Vim… there also was.

I needed to find him, to tell him what happened.

I needed to be the one to admit it. To inform him.

Wasn’t sure why I felt so… serious about it, but…

I wanted him to hear of Amber’s death, and the resulting conflict between me and the residents of the Sleepy Artist, from me. And not from a letter. And not years from now.

Yet at the same time, what if it resulted in me being kicked out of the Society?

For a good few hours I allowed such conflicting thoughts to come and go. After all, with a lack of life around me… and only constant trees and shrubs, there was little else to do.

At least the forest didn’t seem to be getting any darker.

Not that it was getting brighter either.

Somehow it unsettled me. The trees were numerous, and their leaves thick and large… but surely the sun wasn’t that weak? It wasn’t that cold, so I didn’t think there was a storm above us either… so why then weren’t the sun’s rays reaching into the forest?

By now the sun should be high overhead. Yet it looked almost as if it was night and…

Going still, I focused my attention off in the distance. To the left, there looked like…

Yes. Something was moving. In the shadows. Causing shadows to move themselves.

Usually such a sight wouldn’t bother me. After all, forests were full of life. Animals of all shapes. Sometimes even humans, who were out hunting could be found this deep into forests too.

Finally seeing something after so much time, should be a good thing. It should give me relief and comfort that I wasn’t truly alone…

Yet…

Going so long without seeing something made it all the more worrisome to finally see another creature.

I watched it for a moment as I slowed my pace. I wasn’t too worried over it, since it was so far away… but… there was something about it and…

“A bear maybe,” I whispered. It did look… shaped like one. Walking on all fours, as well. Yet I hadn’t smelled it yet. Usually I smelled bears from a great distance.

A heavy sound echoed throughout the quiet forest, and I went still.

Off in the distance I saw the creature move. It was dark… blending in well with the dark forest that we were in, but it was moving. And as I watched it further, I realized something odd.

Whatever it was… there was no doubt that it was much larger than I.

It loomed high enough that, if it was really walking on all fours as I suspected… that if it stood onto its hind legs its head would breach the thick treetops.

Which meant that even I, even though much stronger than any human, would be just as helpless and weak as a normal human woman in front of it.

I gulped, and slowly stepped backward.

It wasn’t acting as if it noticed me. Yet at the same time, how could it not? Something that big… its senses were probably far beyond my own. It had probably smelled me from far away; maybe even from the moment I had entered its territory.

After all it wasn’t as if I didn’t smell. My tail and ears always smelled a little different, a little stronger and…

Stepping back another step, I hesitated. The grass beneath my feet wasn’t dry, but it was also full of sticks and weeds. Things that crunched loudly.

If I kept walking it’d definitely hear me, and might focus on me.

Should I just kneel down and do my best to hide? Hold my breath?

Should I run?

Deciding to kneel down slowly, to do my best to blend in with the trees and foliage around me… I went as low to the ground as I could.

The thing stepped to the right, and I heard the heavy footfall. It had only taken a step, yet it had sounded as if it had slapped the earth with great force.

It was heading my way.

Another step followed, and for a brief moment I remembered my youth.

Stories from my grandmother. Stories she and my mother had told to me and my siblings.

Stories of our ancestors who had once ruled the world.

They had ruled because they were at the top of the food chain. Because nothing existed beyond them. Nothing that was bigger. Nothing stronger.

This was probably exactly what they meant.

Was it a bear then? Or something like it? It looked as if it had three sets of legs, but it was hard to tell in the dark and…

A low growl emanated from the dark creature. A rumble echoed throughout the air, vibrating the air to the point that it took everything I had to not reach up and scratch my ears. The sound was so thick, it made the hair in my ears tremble and itchy.

Then it seemed to shift directions. Suddenly I could clearly see the three different sets of legs, as it began to walk towards the direction I had come from. At least it was away from me.

Focusing on the creature as it continued to saunter away; I did my best to not feel relief yet.

After all I couldn’t really tell where it was looking. The shadows kept its head and eyes out of sight… which was strange all on its own. Why weren’t its eyes reflecting the little amount of light?

Then the creature paused. Shifting its great weight, I watched as it hefted what was probably its head. For a brief moment it looked as if it was…

Yes. It was smelling the air.

Smelling for me.

My stomach knotted, and I hoped it’d not gurgle mistakenly. Luckily it didn’t, but my eyes did narrow as I felt a ting of pain.

Eating my full for so many months seemed to have made me spoiled. To think my stomach would complain over only a couple days without food…

Though I knew that the knotting feeling wasn’t just hunger. It was also fear.

Softly rubbing my fingers together, I felt the layer of cold sweat upon them.

Yes. Fear.

A heavy growl drew my entire focus back onto the creature. My ears and tail went stiff as I realized something dreadful.

It really was looking at me.

Three reflective eyes stared directly into my own.

For a few seconds nothing happened. My mind didn’t think. My heart didn’t beat. The beast didn’t move or make a sound.

Then it growled again. A new type of noise. One that was clear, without any words being spoken.

A very distinct, very deep, and very real threat.

Quickly standing, I allowed my heart to beat wildly for a few seconds as I wondered how I’d survive this.

If it wanted me out of its territory, it’d simply chase me… but…

Odds were I was nowhere near the forest’s exit. I’d been walking for most the day. Even at full sprint… it’d take me at least two hours to escape.

That creature wouldn’t give me hours.

And that was with me assuming that it was just a base creature, and not something different. What if it had no comprehension of territories? What if it simply…

Cold understanding dawned on me as I realized that was why the forest was so quiet.

This was why there was no life here.

It ate and killed anything that lived.

Two heavy feet stepped towards me, and I groaned as the realization became clear.

It was no normal animal. And not just because it was bigger than anything I’ve seen.

The beast stepped closer, and as it did it stepped on a large log. Maybe an old fallen tree.

It snapped and crumbled beneath its weight. Squished more than broke.

Turning on a heel, I ignored the creature as it roared.

Breaking into a run, I felt my mind go blank.

I thought of nothing as I ran with everything I had. I ignored the heavy thumps I could not just hear, but almost feel, behind me. I ignored the trees and bushes I ran past, they were nothing but blurs in the corner of my eyes. I ignored the terrible fear bubbling in the pit of my stomach, and the horrible thought that this might have all been a trap.

What if Lughes and Crane had done this on purpose…?

“No!” I screamed, and tossed that thought away. Refused to let it go any further than a thought.

Focusing entirely on my running, I leapt over a large root. A few seconds later, I heard the sound of something huge and heavy ramming into a tree.

Then I heard the tree crack. Then I heard it fall.

It had run into the tree I had just passed, and ran through it.

“Impossible…”

Another tree was plowed through, and I turned a little. To change the direction I ran. Trying to run into the thickest parts of the forest.

Even if it ran through trees, that didn’t meant they didn’t slow it down. Right?

Entering a thick patch, it took everything I had to not trip or slip on the many roots that now littered the floor. I cursed at myself as I noticed my speed noticeably drop. The trees blocking it weren’t going to help me if I slowed down this much!

A loud snap told me it had broke another tree. Then another great crack echoed throughout the forest… then it roared.

Its roar caused me to pick up my pace. It had sounded as if it was right behind me!

“Don’t look!” I shouted at myself, since I wanted to. I needed to! But!

The thing roared as another tree was broken. I heard the rustle of leaves this time, which meant it was that much closer.

Would it destroy the whole forests just to get me? Was it that far gone? More monster than beast?

For several long minutes I ran through the thick trees, and listened as the branches and trees themselves were broken. Shattered and toppled as the beast pursued me.

How much energy was it using to catch me? Each tree it ran into. Each minute that went by…

There was no way I was worth this much effort! I was small! Skin and bones! And!

Then suddenly there were no more trees.

My heart went still as I tried to comprehend what had just happened.

Flat, knee high grass was all around me suddenly… not a tree in sight… and…

Quickly looking around, I felt the hairs on my tail become so stiff it was painful.

I was dead.

I was suddenly in a great clearing. The forest was still here. Behind me. Off in the distance… All around, but not close enough. I had run to my doom.

Looking everywhere for a place to go, a place to escape, I realized there was nowhere to go. A great massive tree was off in the distance, but it was too far away. There was no way I’d escape that creature on this open field, without the trees to slow it down and…

Yet…

As I ran, I realized I was still alive.

Then another minute went by, and…

Daring a glance back, I found nothing but empty field behind me.

Slowing, I hurriedly looked around. Where was it?

Nothing was around me. Not only were there no trees, there was no beast either.

“Where…?” I gasped for air, and regretted slowing down. Now I felt winded. Now I felt the severe layer of not just terror sweat, but exhaustion covering me. Now it’d be noticeable and…

But no. The creature was gone.

Looking all around, I was surprised to find that it really was gone.

It had just been behind me! Where could it have…?

Then I saw it. Three red eyes. Glaring at me from just behind the forest line.

Just behind a few of the trees, the dark silhouette was undoubtedly the creature. It looked even bigger than it had before… and not just because its eyes were closer to the treetops than not.

It was standing. Glaring at me.

With emotion.

I could see visible hatred in those eyes.

“Why…?” I whispered, unsure of what had caused it to stop.

Did it fear the open field? Animals did that sometimes, but never something so big. Never a predator…

Unless there was an even more dangerous…

“You’re very lucky.”

Spinning around, I nearly stumbled as I stepped back. Away from the sudden figure.

A tall woman smiled at me, and I instantly knew she was like me. And not because of the woman’s bright, large eyes… but the feathers on her arms.

Glancing behind me, at the creature, I found it was gone. Or at least, I couldn’t see it anymore. No more red eyes. No more dark shadows, roars or heavy thumps of footfalls.

This woman was undoubtedly the reason then. There was no way something like that would fear just an open clearing. Nor dedicate that much effort to catch me and stop so easily…

“Thank you,” I said to her, and meant it.

“Hm. Come, before she realizes he’s not here,” she said, gesturing towards the massive tree in the distance.

“Huh?” I glanced at the forest, and wondered if it was still there.

“She smells Vim. Yet he’s no longer here. So hurry, please,” the woman said.

Gulping I nodded, and hurried to follow her.

Vim wasn’t here. Yet he had been.

That meant she really was one of us. That meant this was the Owl’s Nest.

Which meant…

Glancing at her back, I noticed the odd shape of it. Beneath a light shirt, was undoubtedly something akin to wings on her back, near her shoulder blades.

I almost died doing it… but I found the Owls.

Lughes and Crane hadn’t tricked me.

Smiling, I did my best to not let the woman in front of me notice my tears.

If she did, hopefully she’d simply assume they were from the relief of surviving… and not being betrayed.

That’d be hard to explain, after all.